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curl-6 on 04 May 2020
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noshten said:

NEW DEVICE SPECULATION

The main reason why I think there would be a complimentary Pro Dock or Peripheral Computing Device, as opposed to a better tablet, is the cost-efficiency.

Right now the technology for a better tablet considering we already got a slight revision last year, doesn't seem feasible. Also as mentioned Nintendo won't want to gate away it's 1st Party games, on the other hand, major third party games have several issues with the Switch. If we aim for a peripheral for $200 or bundled for $450 would ensure there is additional hardware revenue. It would solve a few problems with the Switch for 3rd Parties:

  • Cart Sizes, Peripheral could have its own storage(250-500GB)
  • Peripheral can use NVIDIA's GeForce Now servers and allow dramatically improved performance via cloud-accelerated GPU power
  • Consoles can connect to supplemental computing devices remotely via local wireless network, with the extra processing power/storage being tapped over a wireless network
  • A Peripheral can boost connection strength and improves latency with online games and games/services that are powered by cloud computing

Nintendo has already patented such a device https://www.tweaktown.com/news/53167/nintendo-patents-external-console-upgrade-box/index.html

Now, this would be entirely focused on getting AAA 3rd Party games on the system that require more robust Online Capabilities and would struggle on the Nintendo's Switch's current hardware - think of GTA, COD, FIFA etc. I doubt Nintendo themselves would really create any games exclusive for the beefer "Pro", but it would provide an additional source of income for 3rd Party Devs as they port the PS4/X1 games that struggled to run on the system currently.  

Alternatively, we've also heard about Pro Model, based on the leak - Nintendo is working with NVIDIA to develop a custom processor based on Volta architecture. https://www.ibtimes.com/new-nintendo-switch-pro-leaked-specs-might-disappoint-gamers-2909398

In any case, I expect Pro to hit this year or early 2021. 

In addition to third parties not being bothered to port games to a fraction of the userbase, the kind of bandwidth/speed required for supplemental processing can't be done via the current Switch's USB or wireless connections, so a "Pro Dock" isn't viable.